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rockfax
Apr 10, 2006, 11:21 AM
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Word has trickled out from ScottishClimbs.com to the UKClimbing.com forums that this weekend Dave MacLeod has climbed the the direct line of the Dave Cuthbertson route, Requiem, on Dumbarton Rock, in Scotland.
MacLeod said recently in the Sunday Herald, “I’ve known about the true line of the Requiem crack since I started climbing; it’s obvious, in your face. You just climb the crack all the way to the top. I’d tried the moves in 2002 when I had just done the first E9 in Scotland and couldn’t even hang on the holds.”
MacLeod who has been trying the route over the last year was known to be getting close. This could be the hardest traditional route in the world and a strong contender for E11. MacLeod has climbed several E10's, bouldered Font 8b and is at the cutting edge of hard Scottish mixed ice climbing.
Many 50ft falls were taken whilst doing the last section which is thought to be around Fr 8c+ or 5.14c
UKClimbing News: http://www.ukclimbing.com/news/
UKClimbing.com Forums: http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?n=177104
ScottishClimbs.com: http://www.scottishclimbs.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=2828
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overlord
Apr 10, 2006, 11:46 AM
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kudos to the man.
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j_ung
Apr 10, 2006, 1:57 PM
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j_ung moved this thread from General to World Climbing News.
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overlord
Apr 10, 2006, 2:35 PM
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In reply to: j_ung moved this thread from General to World Climbing News.
oh, thats why it appeared on FP with the wrong timestamp;
the oldset thread on FP was at 06:10, but this was in the middle of the list with the time of 04:46.
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dudemanbu
Apr 11, 2006, 1:06 AM
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Is that last section the most techincally difficult part? Because I'm under the impression that 5.14 has gone free before. I really have no idea how the E scale works, just trying to get an idea. I'm not in any way trying to belittle the accomplishment.
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musicman1586
Apr 11, 2006, 1:37 AM
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In reply to: Is that last section the most techincally difficult part? Because I'm under the impression that 5.14 has gone free before. I really have no idea how the E scale works, just trying to get an idea. I'm not in any way trying to belittle the accomplishment.
5.14 has gone free before, this is the hardest non-sport free climb ever sent (well according to this news)
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miavzero
Apr 11, 2006, 1:58 AM
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Great accomplishment, but I have never equated the rehearsal of routes with trad climbing. Maybe its traditional for the Scots? I would call it one hell of an accomplishment in gear climbing.
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blakester
Apr 11, 2006, 2:45 AM
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In reply to: Is that last section the most techincally difficult part? Because I'm under the impression that 5.14 has gone free before. I really have no idea how the E scale works, just trying to get an idea. I'm not in any way trying to belittle the accomplishment.
Zebra Crack "la zebree" as been freed on gear @ 5.14something... it's near montreal.
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wzrdgandalf
Apr 11, 2006, 3:39 AM
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If la zebree is the one that was on video on dr topo for a while, which i was under the impression it was, then all that gear looked pre placed. But i could definately be wrong. Is that considered going free?
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roseraie
Apr 11, 2006, 4:23 AM
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The real question is, what's the hardest traditional climb ever ONSIGHTED?
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overlord
Apr 11, 2006, 7:21 AM
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In reply to: Great accomplishment, but I have never equated the rehearsal of routes with trad climbing. Maybe its traditional for the Scots? I would call it one hell of an accomplishment in gear climbing.
offcourse the "best" style is onstight, but redpoint is just as valid. as long as you dont have preplaced gear.
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flyinspider
Apr 11, 2006, 2:21 PM
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I can't believe how many people here on this site are whining about whether or not this was an on sight; or splitting hairs over the "true definition" of a trad route. I have been listening to this kind of crap from climbers for 14 years. How about more comraderie and less back-biting...lest we show the world just how petty and self-absorbed some of us can be. Is it impossible for such people to drop their parochial, armchair sidelining long enough to congratulate this guy for one of the most incredible ascents in history?? SO WHAT if he took some falls before sending?? In my book, that's more impressive to still have the drive and the head to send after 50 foot falls on trad gear. I think anyone who wants to gripe about his falls should first have to place gear - successfully - all the way up another 5.14c. Oh wait, they can't...because there isn't another one. This guy owns that grade on TRAD.
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andrew_i
Apr 11, 2006, 3:03 PM
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In reply to: I can't believe how many people here on this site are whining about whether or not this was an on sight; or splitting hairs over the "true definition" of a trad route. I have been listening to this kind of crap from climbers for 14 years. I think anyone who wants to gripe about his falls should first have to place gear - successfully - all the way up another 5.14c. Oh wait, they can't...because there isn't another one. This guy owns that grade on TRAD.
Maybe I'm confused here but didn't one of those links say he sent it on preplaced wires? If so is that still Trad? I mean hell yea that is one hell of an accomplishment more than I will ever come close to in my life, but is clipping preplaced wires considered trad climbing? None the less the guy's obviously a fricken animal!
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flyinspider
Apr 11, 2006, 3:16 PM
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I didn't see anything about preplaced gear. If that's true, then no, I wouldn't call it trad either. Not sure what I'd call it. BUT, if he did it while placing all the gear, then it's trad as far as I'm concerned...whether on sight or not. That would just mean it was a redpoint rather than an onsight...but still trad for sure cuz it takes xtra guns to hang on while you fiddle with gear. Either way, 14c would be rad on toprope for pretty much any of us, wouldn't it? Note: Magic Line in Yosemite is the hardest preplaced trad route I know of (14b). But I don't think Ron Kauk ever tried to call that trad, cuz it was preplaced.
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krusher4
Apr 11, 2006, 3:31 PM
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In reply to: In reply to: Is that last section the most techincally difficult part? Because I'm under the impression that 5.14 has gone free before. I really have no idea how the E scale works, just trying to get an idea. I'm not in any way trying to belittle the accomplishment. 5.14 has gone free before, this is the hardest non-sport free climb ever sent (well according to this news)
What about Iron Monkey in Eldo sent by Matt Segal?? 5.14??
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andrew_i
Apr 11, 2006, 3:36 PM
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In reply to: BUT, if he did it while placing all the gear, then it's trad as far as I'm concerned...whether on sight or not.
Oh hell yea! I could really care less about the onsight / red point, and sending it after taking multiple fifty foot falls impresses me almost as much as an onsight does. Not that duder gives a f*#k what I think.
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flyinspider
Apr 11, 2006, 3:47 PM
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Matt did that? I know that guy. Makes me feel better about his making me feel lame when I climbed at the gym with him when he was a kid. Anyway, "free" just means it wasn't aided. Of course, 5.14's been freed before by hundreds of bolt-clippers. And I remember a story about John Dunn doing a 14a trad route, and I think Sonny Trotter did one too; and a Canadian about five years ago, but all these were nowhere near 14"C"!! That makes this the hardest trad route ever sent (by a long shot). If he rehearsed it, it's still all that...just a redpoint rather than an onsight. But then, no one's onsighted 14C on bolts either.
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krusher4
Apr 11, 2006, 3:50 PM
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I don't know about the placing of gear...and I think he did it yo-yo style??? does anyone know?
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overlord
Apr 11, 2006, 4:38 PM
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In reply to: But then, no one's onsighted 14C on bolts either.
actually they did :wink:
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bobruef
Apr 11, 2006, 4:44 PM
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In reply to: BUT, if he did it while placing all the gear, then it's trad as far as I'm concerned...whether on sight or not. That would just mean it was a redpoint rather than an onsight
I've heard that called a pink point.
To redpoint, I think he'd still have to place the gear on lead, on the send.
I could be wrong though.
No matter how you slice it, an incredible accomplishment.
50 footers... yikes!
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chouca
Apr 11, 2006, 5:04 PM
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This a a 200 ft., 5.14c climbed without bolts, taking falls high up on RP's. An amazing feat regardless of the specifics, but we sure love to nitpick, don't we? Either way, this advances free climbing more than another sporty 9a/b. Badass!
Magic Line looks like a trick route to me, and is absolutley amazing in it's own right. I can never figure out how Kauk handled that all that weird body positioning to complete it.
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bustloose
Apr 11, 2006, 7:24 PM
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the rc.com "community" of climbers kills me, it really does. did any of you actually go to the link? read the story? try going here and reading about it.
http://www.ukclimbing.com/...cles/page.php?id=198
every other website that posted this up has nothing but positive things to say about this amazing accomplishment, and all you couch potatoes can do is speculate about the send, and ask silly questions about pink-pointing and rehearsing the moves... pathetic.
this is not some bomber roof crack 5.14 that sucks up gear and involves little 10 foot falls into space, it's a vertical crack, that takes no gear for the last 35 feet, which contains 5.14+ climbing. go to scotland and give it a try, come on, i dare you. most of you wouldn't have the nads to climb E6, let alone E10 or 11. Dave sustained a myriad of injuries taking falls on Rhapsody, and took a 70 footer, skipping off the ledge, tied back in and kept trying it. THAT takes more headspace than the lot of you have, combined.
climbers rehearse E grade climbs on TR becuase many of the falls have high potential for serious injury, or hitting the ground due to the lack of good gear placements. you can't really afford to take a bunch of 30 foot falls to the ground while you're working a route now can you... if you don't understand the ethics of an area, ask questions, but don't make silly comments about 'well, if he had onsighted it, that would be a big deal, this is just some dude who climbed a hard route on gear'
this is easily one of the most significant trad climbs in the world, ever.
oh, and he placed all the gear on lead.
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porcelainsunset
Apr 11, 2006, 8:40 PM
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In reply to: In reply to: I can't believe how many people here on this site are whining about whether or not this was an on sight; or splitting hairs over the "true definition" of a trad route. I have been listening to this kind of crap from climbers for 14 years. I think anyone who wants to gripe about his falls should first have to place gear - successfully - all the way up another 5.14c. Oh wait, they can't...because there isn't another one. This guy owns that grade on TRAD. Maybe I'm confused here but didn't one of those links say he sent it on preplaced wires? If so is that still Trad? I mean hell yea that is one hell of an accomplishment more than I will ever come close to in my life, but is clipping preplaced wires considered trad climbing? None the less the guy's obviously a fricken animal!
What PlanetFear had to say about pre-placed wires is this, "Current accepted thought is that it is F8a+ or E8 6b on pre-placed wires." However, it is an E11 on Redpoint Trad, which is what it was. Congrats to the crazy Scottish climber. The first time in a while I have been interested in someone's hot send. Props to Dave MaCleod.
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hosh
Apr 11, 2006, 9:29 PM
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Hard send aside, he's just got a sweet name, MaCleod? That's pretty fly. And I bet he gets a lot of ladies if he's got a Scottish Accent. I know my wife is a sucker for accents...
and that's a pretty buff lead. I was feeling tough after leading 5.10 R this past weekend... That's Nothing compared to what this chap did!
hosh.
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